Crew to Host Wizards in 2002 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Semifinal on Tuesday

NewsSep 6, 2002

CHICAGO (Friday, September 6, 2002) – The Columbus Crew (MLS) will host the Kansas City Wizards (MLS) in the second and final 2002 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Semifinal set for Tuesday, September 10 at 8 p.m. ET. The match will be broadcast live on Fox Sports World and Fox Sports World Español.

The winner of the Crew-Wizards match-up will meet the defending Open Cup champion Los Angeles Galaxy (MLS) for the 2002 title in late October at a site to be determined.

The Galaxy advanced to their second consecutive Open Cup Final after topping the visiting Dallas Burn (MLS) 4-1 in the first Semifinal held on Sept. 3, at Titan Stadium in Fullerton, Calif.

– SEMIFINALS PREVIEW, RECAP (Overall Record Since 1996) –

GALAXY ADVANCES TO 2002 OPEN CUP FINAL WITH 4-1 WIN OVER BURN: Goals by Carlos Ruiz, Mauricio Cienfuegos, Cobi Jones and Simon Elliott led the defending champion Los Angeles Galaxy past the Dallas Burn, 4-1, in a 2002 Open Cup Semifinal encounter on Sept. 3, at Cal State Fullerton's Titan Stadium. With the victory, the Galaxy (11-2-1) extends their tournament unbeaten streak to eight games (matching the MLS’ Chicago Fire from 2000-01), as they advance to their second consecutive Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Final on the weekend of October 26-27 against the winner of the semifinal between Kansas City Wizards (MLS) and Columbus Crew (MLS) at a site to be determined. Galaxy goalkeeper Matt Reis, who made six saves on the night, earned his third straight victory, adding to his shutout wins over MLS’s San Jose Earthquakes (1-0) and the A-League’s Minnesota Thunder (4-0).

Columbus Crew (11-3-1) vs. Kansas City Wizards (3-4-1) @ Crew Stadium in Columbus, Ohio, on September 10, at 8 p.m. ETFirst-ever meeting between these two Midwest teams in tournament play … Columbus Crew have never lost an Open Cup game at home (5-0-1), while the Kansas City Wizards have earned two consecutive road victories in 2002 … Crew – Are in a four-way tie with the Chicago Fire, Dallas Burn and Los Angeles Galaxy for the most wins by a MLS squad in Open Cup history (11) … Advanced to the Semifinals for the third time in history after defeating the host NY/NJ MetroStars (MLS) 2-1 in the Quarterfinals … Earned a spot in the Quarterfinals after blanking the visiting Richmond Kickers (A-League) 3-0 in Third Round play ... Are making their fifth appearance in the Open Cup … Best finish for the Crew was second place in 1998, losing to the Chicago Fire in the final … Wizards – Have made five previous appearances (1996-98, 2000-01) in the Open Cup, but amazingly only have three total victories in tournament play … Posted a 2-0 shutout of the host Milwaukee Rampage (A-League) in the Quarterfinals … Prior to the Quarterfinals, the Wizards earned a dramatic come-from-behind 3-2 overtime road win over the Rochester Raging Rhinos (A-League) in the Third Round.

LOS ANGELES LOOKING FOR SECOND STRAIGHT TITLE: MLS’ Los Angeles Galaxy want to become the first team since the New York Pancyprian-Freedoms of the Cosmopolitan Soccer League to win back-to-back U.S. Open Cup Championships (1982-83). Since the inception of the single-elimination tournament in 1914, only seven other clubs have captured two consecutive titles, just one has done it on two separate occasions (Bethlehem Steel, Pa. - 1915-16 and 1918-19).

MCBRIDE CLOSES IN ON ALL-TIME LEADER MORENO ON OPEN CUP SCORING LIST: After notching two goals during the 2002 Open Cup, forward Brian McBride (Columbus Crew-MLS) has scored eight career goals placing him second on the Open Cup all-time scoring list (since 1996). McBride just passed a crowded third spot that included Chris Albright, Abdul Thompson Conteh, Johnny Menyongar, Welton, Dante Washington and Josh Wolff, who have all scored seven goals in Open Cup play. They all trail current leader Jamie Moreno of D.C. United (MLS) with 10 career tallies.

147 PARTICIPANTS IN 2002 TOURNAMENT: A total of 147 teams were eligible to compete for the 2002 Lamar Hunt Open Cup. After qualification concluded in the A-League/D3 Pro League, Premier Development League (PDL) and the U.S. Adult Soccer Association (USASA), 24 teams joined eight qualified Major League Soccer Franchises in the single-elimination tournament. Below is the breakdown by league: - Major League Soccer (8 spots): 10 teams eligible - A-League/D3 Pro League (15 spots): 30 teams eligible - Premier Development League (5 spots): 44 teams eligible - United States Adult Soccer Association (4 spots): 63 teams eligible

GOALS, GOALS AND MORE GOALS: With the completion of 29 games so far in the 2002 U.S. Open Cup, a total of 91 goals have been scored for an average of 3.14 per match.

WHO WANTS TO WIN $100,000? The 2002 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Champion will receive $100,000 in prize money, while the runner-up will take home $50,000. In addition, $10,000 is awarded to the team from each of the following categories of the U.S. Open Cup competition that advances the furthest in the competition: (1) the Amateur Division; (2) the Professional Outdoor Division III; and (3) the Professional Outdoor Division II. If more than one team in a category advances furthest to the same round of competition, the $10,000 will be divided equally among those teams in that category.

DID YOU KNOW? ABOUT THE U.S. OPEN CUP…* U.S. MNT midfielder Billy Gonsalves (1 goal, 6 caps), who played in two FIFA World Cups (Uruguay 1930, Italy 1934), won eight Open Cup titles with five teams in his club career. Gonsalves captured back-to-back championships with three clubs: Fall River (Mass.) Marksmen of the American Soccer League (ASL) in 1930-31, St. Louis Stix, Baer and Fuller of the St. Louis Soccer League in 1933-34 and the Brooklyn Hispaño (ASL) in 1943-44. Gonsalves also won the Open Cup crown with the New Bedford (Mass.) Whalers (ASL) in 1932 and the St. Louis Central Breweries F.C. in 1935.

* The New York Greek-American of the German-American Soccer League is the only team to have won the U.S. Open Cup three consecutive years 1967-69.